OutRun
2006: Coast 2 Coast is a fun game as long as you take
it for what it's worth.by Mike Chasselwaite

July
8, 2006 - Note:
You may have to order the PC version off the net.
Not a lot of brick and mortar stores seem to be carrying
it. Try CompUSA, Amazon.com etc. You may recall
Outrun from the arcade days. It's a cross-country
racing game that requires that you reach specific
checkpoints within a given time limit in order to
continue playing. You may also remember Outrun 2,
the most recent sequel to the original arcade version.
And if you do, that's too bad because Outrun 2006:
Coast 2 Coast is basically a re-release of that game.
Although it has one new mode and a few new features,
it's still the same game at the core. It even uses
the exact same tracks.

It's
you, your Ferrari, and your gal. Guess which one is
expendable? Yes, the car is definitely man's best
friend in this game. Your girlfriend will start to
whine and bitch if you don't pull off some manly driving
stunts for her. She'll even leave you for your racing
rival if you don't manage to keep the lead. And if
she sounds shallow, that's only because she's taking
after the gameplay. Fashioned after an arcade game,
Outrun 2006: Coast 2 Coast fails to bring the game
to the next level. As far as I'm concerned the gameplay
has run its course, and if you've ever played it,
you have already run it courses. I mean the tracks
are literally identical. Down to the last mountainous
curve. Such lack of new content wouldn't even qualify
this game for expansion pack status.

Just
looking at the gameplay, regardless of the fact that
it's regurgitated, Outrun 2006: Coast 2 Coast is a
fun game as long as you take it for what it's worth.
Don't expect to squeeze a month or two out of the
gameplay; you'll get bored with it long before then.
You can play it to death in a weekend or just hack
away at it over a couple of weeks. The cars are fun
to drive, even if they have very similar handling
characteristics. The controls are tight and forgiving,
for the most part.

There
are 30 levels and a moderate selection of modes. The
levels feature a variety of challenging environments
from perilous and icy mountainous regions to heat-soaked
tropical locales with some city centers thrown in
to keep you on your toes. All of the tracks include
treacherous curves that separate the straight-aways
- and the men from the boys. Reaching top speed in
your Ferrari takes only seconds but keeping it up
is impossible, thanks to the various turns and the
lumbering traffic. Corners can be taken by power-sliding.
This is a technique in which you apply the brakes
while keeping your petal to the metal. This keeps
the revs on your engine up so that when you straighten
out and take your foot off the break, you'll shoot
back up to top speed like a rocket. The tracks are
wide which makes passing traffic a breeze, but you
also have to dodge a lot of oncoming traffic as a
result. Combine this with a variety of twists and
turns all designed to slow you down while trying to
make the deadline, and you've got a game that is sure
to get your adrenaline pumping.

Modes
include Outrun, Time Attack, Heart Attack and the
new Coast 2 Coast mode in which you have to perform
some extra tricky maneuvers to please the flagman
- who basically takes the place of your girlfriend
from the Heart Attack mode. They'll both ask you to
do things such as maintain your lead in a race against
a rival racer, run down ghosts on the road and take
corners at high speeds. These extra challenges offer
a little more depth to the plain racing experience.

I'm
glad that this series doesn't feature power-ups or
vehicular combat with weapons. It's very close to
that neighborhood since this isn't exactly a sim but
the racing is engaging enough to stand on its own
though not for very long. Adding superfluous elements
to it would only muddle it up. As it is, the only
way to increase your speed is to ride in another vehicle's
slipstream. In real life this doesn't actually increase
your speed, it reduced drag which allows you to maintain
a specific speed by using less fuel. There is an element
of combat which includes bumping into your competition
but you seldom get away unscathed as the AI tend to.
When they bump into you and try to force you into
a wall or off the side of the road, it will at least
slow you down while they zoom past. When you try to
give them a taste of their own medicine it almost
always backfires on you. It's best to avoid it altogether.

When
you complete a level you will receive a score that
includes the total number of Outrun miles that you've
completed. These are converted to points which you
can use to purchase things at the showroom such as
different Ferrari models including the Spider and
the Superamerica. There are some 150 unlockables in
the game but the majority of them are skins, in the
form of different paint jobs. Not really much to get
excited about.

Outrun
2006 isn't really a very good looking game. For a
game with such a unique and exclusive license you
would expect the vehicles to look a hell of a lot
better. They look great in the showroom but on the
track they suffer from the jaggies. The same goes
for the environments which are filled with detail
but are anything but lush. There are some nice reflections
and a good sense of speed. It looks as good as the
best 80s arcade games ever did - but is that good
enough for you?

Whether
you're taking OutRun 2006 on the go with the PSP version
or Driving Miss Lazy at home on the consoles, you'll
definitely get that deja vu feeling. However instead
of a sense of "been there, done that" it
will be a wave of comforting nostalgia, like a sea
breeze taking you back to days gone by. OutRun 2006
is a lot of fun, it's just that you have to know exactly
what to expect from the series.

Features:

Thirty
fully licensed Ferrari supercars.

Open
her up across 15 stages, including 15 U.S. based
locations.

Online
Multiplayer madness - take on 6 other drivers using
online play or PSP wireless connectivity!

Impress
your girl in Heart Attack Mode. Pull off daring
drifts and speed past other cars as you roar down
the highway and increase your score.

Tuned
up cars. Many of the cars feature all-new acceleration,
handling, and speed.